- Period:
- Second World War (1939-1945)
- Rank:
- Lieutenant
- Unit:
- F Section, Special Operations Executive (SOE), British Government
- Awarded on:
- November 15th, 1945
Citation:
"This officer was parachuted into France in June 1942 as W/T operator to an important circuit based on Lyon. Four months in conditions of the gravest danger he maintained W/T communication for his circuit, and made possible the delivery of supplies of arms and equipment to the local resistance forces. The organiser and several members of the group were arrested two months after his arrival, but nevertheless carried on in collaboration with another officer, in spite of the fact that he was known to the Gestapo. He narrowly escaped arrest on several occasions, and was forced to keep on the move in order to avoid enemy D/F convoys.
Lieut Stonehouse was eventually arrested by the Gestapo in mid October 1942 and spent 2,5 years in various prisons and concentration camps in France and in Germany. He stood up to the brutal treatment he received with great courage and endurance. He was liberated from Dachau in May 1945 and repatriated to England.
For his courage in undertaking the hazardous task of working as a clandestine W/T operator in France it is recommended that he be appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (Military Div.)."
Signed
Major-General Colin Gubbins
20.7.45